Obama will likely delay DTV switch

[Redhawk]

Obama will likely delay DTV switch

As President-elect Barack Obama prepares to take over the United States this week, his transition team is reportedly interested in delaying the switch from analog to digital TV a few months.

The U.S. government's program that subsidizes converter boxes for analog TVs ran out of money earlier in the month, which has caused alarm among politicians.

The Obama administration supports a delay, but Republicans in the U.S. Senate objected Sen. John Rockefeller IV (D, WV)'s plan to have the date set to June 12. Senator Rockefeller will likely resubmit the bill sometime during the week. Moving forward, expect both sides to continue to argue about what should be done, as Obama officially becomes President in two days.

Here's a confirming link from a more reliable source:
Obama Urges Delay In Digital TV Switch - washingtonpost.com

 

[Mac]

Hmmm wouldn't bother me either way, but why is this just now coming out? If they ran out of money why didn't they start talking about the delay as soon as that happened?

 

[jwinslow]

I remember reading about this before thanksgiving, not sure about before.

 

[Dryden]

"Don't tell me we can't change. Yes, we can. Yes, we can change. Yes, we can."

Oh. Sorry! Too political for this forum? :tongue2:

 

[sandgk]

Whether it's political or not I think this is simply a bad idea. Money for nearly free digital converter boxes is supposed to be at the heart of this. (The cash is expensed as gone until it is put back into the pool with an unused coupon). But, seriously, the likelihood of getting everyone on board with Digital at the same time was always going to be nearly zero.

Delaying will cause not insignificant costs for broadcasters, moreover, it delays freeing up of spectrum that would allow for better (more and possibly les compressed) HD channels via Sat or Cable. Certainly it simplifies OTA transmissions.

Obama says he is all about community organizing. Fine, here is a great example of where that could be put into effect. The majority of those affected are believed to be elderly. Why then not do as I have seen some post on BP as intending to do, take time out of your life to make sure that old neighbor on your street, or your aging Aunt across town, or the retired members of your congregation have got what they need for Digital TV. Sounds like a feasible and laudable action to me, and a more positive reaction than simply kicking the can down the road.

 

[DaytonBuck]

Whether it's political or not I think this is simply a bad idea. Money for nearly free digital converter boxes is supposed to be at the heart of this. (The cash is expensed as gone until it is put back into the pool with an unused coupon). But, seriously, the likelihood of getting everyone on board with Digital at the same time was always going to be nearly zero.

Delaying will cause not insignificant costs for broadcasters, moreover, it delays freeing up of spectrum that would allow for better (more and possibly les compressed) HD channels via Sat or Cable. Certainly it simplifies OTA transmissions.

Obama says he is all about community organizing. Fine, here is a great example of where that could be put into effect. The majority of those affected are believed to be elderly. Why then not do as I have seen some post on BP as intending to do, take time out of your life to make sure that old neighbor on your street, or your aging Aunt across town, or the retired members of your congregation have got what they need for Digital TV. Sounds like a feasible and laudable action to me, and a more positive reaction than simply kicking the can down the road.

great idea, sd. WOSU has a program going on where people could donate extra or unneeded coupons to help out people

 

[Jake]

I think this type of situation will arise again when the revised date approaches, assuming it is revised at all. There will always be some folks who ignore the issue until time is running out. The ads have been running for months.

 

[buckeyefool]

I think this type of situation will arise again when the revised date approaches, assuming it is revised at all. There will always be some folks who ignore the issue until time is running out. The ads have been running for months.

Months? More like a year.

Didn't this already get pushed back once before? Think originally it was suppose to happen last year sometime.

 

[Redhawk]

Senate OKs 4-month delay to digital TV changeover - Yahoo! News

WASHINGTON ? The Senate on Monday voted unanimously to postpone the upcoming transition from analog to digital television broadcasting by four months to June 12 ? setting the stage for Congress to pass the proposal as early as Tuesday. Monday's Senate vote is a big victory for the Obama administration and Democrats in Congress, who have been pushing for a delay amid growing concerns that too many Americans won't be ready for the currently scheduled Feb. 17 changeover.

The Nielsen Co. estimates that more than 6.5 million U.S. households that rely on analog television sets to pick up over-the-air broadcast signals could see their TV sets go dark next month if the transition is not postponed. "Delaying the upcoming DTV switch is the right thing to do," said Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Jay Rockefeller, D-W.Va., author of the bill to push back the deadline. "I firmly believe that our nation is not yet ready to make this transition at this time."

The issue now goes to the House, where Commerce Committee Chairman Henry Waxman, D-Calif., has vowed to work with House leaders to bring Rockefeller's bill up for a floor vote on Tuesday. President Barack Obama earlier this month called for the transition date to be postponed after the Commerce Department hit a $1.34 billion funding limit for government coupons that consumers may use to help pay for digital TV converter boxes. The boxes, which generally cost between $40 and $80 each and can be purchased without a coupon, translate digital signals back into analog ones for older TVs.

The National Telecommunications and Information Administration, the arm of the Commerce Department administering the program, is now sending out new coupons only as older, unredeemed ones expire and free up more money. The NTIA had nearly 2.6 million coupon requests on a waiting list as of last Wednesday.

Jonathan Collegio, vice president for the digital television transition for the National Association of Broadcasters, argues that the Nielsen numbers may overstate the number of viewers who are not ready for the digital transition. He noted that the numbers exclude consumers who have already purchased a converter box but not yet installed it, as well as those who have requested coupons but not yet received them.

What's more, consumers who subscribe to cable or satellite TV service or who own a TV with a digital tuner will not lose reception.
Still Gene Kimmelman, vice president for federal policy at Consumers Union, argues that millions of Americans ? particularly low-income and elderly viewers ? will pay the price because "the government has failed to deliver the converter boxes these people deserve just to keep watching free, over-the-air broadcast signals."

In 2005, Congress required broadcasters to switch from analog to digital signals, which are more efficient, to free up valuable chunks of wireless spectrum to be used for commercial wireless services and interoperable emergency-response networks.
Republicans in both the House and Senate have raised concerns that a delay would confuse consumers, burden wireless companies and public safety agencies waiting for the airwaves that will be vacated and create added costs for television stations that would have to continue broadcasting both analog and digital signals.

Paula Kerger, president and CEO of the Public Broadcasting Service, estimates that delaying the digital TV transition to June 12 would cost public broadcasters $22 million. But Rockefeller managed to ease some of these concerns by allowing broadcast stations to make the switch from analog to digital signals sooner than the June deadline if they choose and by permitting public safety agencies to take over vacant spectrum that has been promised to them as soon as it becomes available.

 

[fourteenandoh]

question, what is the average age of a TV that can't get a digital signal? its gotta be over 20 years old right?

 

[Redhawk]

question, what is the average age of a TV that can't get a digital signal? its gotta be over 20 years old right?

I can't answer that exactly, but my TV is about 8 years old and isn't digital.

 

[DaytonBuck]

question, what is the average age of a TV that can't get a digital signal? its gotta be over 20 years old right?

I believe it's only since they passed the law in 2005 that they started requiring all tv sold have the digital tuner

 

[sandgk]

question, what is the average age of a TV that can't get a digital signal? its gotta be over 20 years old right?

A better question is when can you be certain that any television sold contained a digital tuner.

The cut-off was March 1, 2007: FCC

As of March 1, 2007, all television receivers shipped in interstate commerce or imported into the United States must contain a digital tuner. In addition, effective May 25, 2007, the Commission required sellers of television receiving equipment that does not include a digital tuner to disclose at the point-of-sale that such devices include only an analog tuner, and therefore will require a digital-to-analog converter box to receive over-the-air broadcast television after the transition date. Retailers must inform consumers by prominently displaying the following text if they are selling TV equipment with only an analog tuner:

An earlier version (incorrectly archived at About.com) showed the cascade of dates ending with the any and all TV's and tuning boxes (DVR's DVD players etc) - size mattered.

In the United States, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is regulating the conversion from analog to digital. As a measure, the FCC is setting deadlines making it mandatory that all manufacturers include digital tuners in their televisions. Here are the dates:

• July 1, 2005: All TVs with screen sizes over 36" must include built-in ATSC tuner
• July 1, 2006: 100 of 25-35" TVs must include ATSC DTV tuner (right now only 50 required)
• July 1, 2007: 100 of 13-24" TVs must include ATSC DTV tuner
• July 1, 2007: 100 of all interface devices must have ATSC DTV tuner (VCR, DVD player/recorder, DVR)

In reality though if you are a cable subscriber (or satellite) you can get your ATSC via the set-top box, even if the TV does not include an ATSC tuner. The only real draw-back is if you do not have the capability to use an OTA through the set-top box - differs by service supplier.

 

[Redhawk]

Delay of analog TV's death hits House snag - CNN.com

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The effort to delay next month's scheduled death of analog television suffered a setback in Congress on Wednesday, despite warnings that millions of American homes will not be able to see broadcast shows in three weeks.

Will the end of analog television come in February, or sometime later? The answer is now up in the air. The bill, which passed the Senate unanimously Monday, failed to get the necessary two-thirds vote in the House on Wednesday afternoon.

It was not immediately known if or when another vote might be taken in the House.


continued

 

[Redhawk]

DTV transition date still under debate

One day before the House of Representatives is scheduled to vote another time on a bill aimed at delaying the switch from analog TV to digital television, confusion and anger among politicians and journalists still runs high.

"The next few weeks are going to be extremely difficult -- as difficult as any that this Commission, and millions of TV consumers, has ever faced," FCC Chairman Michael Copps said to the FCC Consumer Advisory Committee at the end of last week.

"That's because we never really dug deep enough to understand all the consequences that would attend the DTV transition -- not just the intended good results, but all the unintended consequences, too, the ones that usually cause the big problems. It's because we didn't have a well thought out and coherent and coordinated plan to ease the transition -- a plan to combine the resources we needed to avoid disruption."

If you have cable or satellite TV, you will be unaffected by the digital transition, whenever it takes place.

Unless the House passes the bill tomorrow, which would delay the DTV transition until June 12, the transition will take place as scheduled on Feb. 17.

Democrats support delaying the bill to give the estimated 6.5 million unprepared Americans time to either purchase a converter box, digital cable subscription, or purchase a new TV. The U.S. government opened up a program offering $40 converter box vouchers, but ran out of money in the middle of last month.

Rep. Henry Waxman, Chairman of the House Energy and Commerce, said there are officially 1.8 million households waiting for 3.3 million DTV vouchers.

"Without a delay of the transition date, few, if any, of these households will receive their coupons by February 17 because of the time it takes to process coupon requests," Waxman wrote in a letter to members of the House, urging them to delay the transition.

Last week, the Senate approved the DTV delay bill, but when the issue was passed to the House, the necessary two-thirds majority wasn't met.

Prior to being elected president, and once officially becoming president, Obama has supported a delay in the DTV switch, mentioning how many people will be left behind if the switch is made in a couple of weeks.